It sounded kind of like a hippie commune for a day. (And I mean that in the best way!) But it was promoted foremost as a yoga retreat. Not to worry, I didn't fall in with a weird cult or anything... This was my first Wild Vibes festival at Spring Hill in South Berwick. I bought a (non-refundable) "blind faith" early bird ticket back in the spring, meaning I got a good price, but I knew nothing about the lineup of classes, etc. which had not yet been set. That indeed took a LOT of faith on my part. All I could do was judge by previous years' events to decide if it MIGHT be up my alley, and hope nothing came up in the meantime to preclude my attendance. But something kept telling me it was worth it. I'm really glad now that I did it. :-) The festival offers a bunch of coolness. Great live music, vendors (all kinds of awesome hippie stuff), yoga classes, including paddleboard yoga, wellness lectures & demos, movement workshops, energy healing, and a variety of artists and performers. There really is something for everyone. You can even just go and enjoy the atmosphere, listen to the tunes, and shop. Of course, you know if there's education to be had, I'm all over that. ;-) The one downside to events like this is that you can't do it ALL. There are always overlapping workshops, usually 75% of which you want to take. So you have to prioritize and pick one. It always seems to work out though. I started my day with "Rock N Roll Warrior Yoga" with David Glazebrook of Yoga on York. It was a fun yet challenging class. From there I moved on to "Pachamama Yoga Ceremony" with Jonas Zev from Shilo Farm Eco Lodge & Retreat. His training in Peruvian Shamanism (which is what I have) and Tai Chi enticed me. It was a nice yoga session interwoven with basic sacred ceremony, offering a grounding, peaceful experience. I did however leave a bit early for personal reasons. After a few minutes of wandering around, I returned to the workshop tents to catch a lecture on "Making Your Dream Life Deliberate" with photographer Raya Al-Hashmi & writer Carley Barton. This was my first favorite workshop. Lots of good motivation and inspiration. The ladies made the point about living your dream life not being about luck, but about intentional action. There was also much good advice on dealing with overwhelm. And the reminder that success is defined by being able to live in a way that makes you happy. This is something different for everyone, and very often has little to do with credentials! Next up was a creative movement/dance workshop with Anthony Bounphakhom of LA Beatz Dance Studio. I admit, I almost walked away from this one. Improv, interaction... definitely not my comfort zone! But I'm happy to say I stuck it out, and it really helped me let go and loosen up. I'm very glad I had my bellydance experience to fall back on, as it helped me get in the flow of unrestricted movement. And Anthony made the class lots of fun, and it certainly embraced the Wild Vibes motto of "Celebrate Your Natural State!" This was probably the most I laughed all day, so that's gotta say something. At that point, a brief summer storm blew in, bringing some fairly heavy, but pleasant (sorta) rain. The photographers had a field day shooting the kids (and adults) dancing and playing in nature's shower. It was a much needed cool down from the heat & humidity, and was a relatively small storm that kept it's distance. Personally, I enjoyed the percussion from above, and the impressive light show as well, but not everyone appreciates a good thunder storm. Thankfully it was short lived. I was also lucky in that my next class was under the big yoga tent. We did "Moving Meditation" with Sara Curry of Seacoast Area Teachers of Yoga in Action, which focused on body awareness and presence. By the time we finished, the skies had cleared and it was once again a lovely day. For now... Last on my itinerary was "Unleash Your Wild" with creators of Wild Vibes, AJ Govoni & Maggie Barrett, and DJ Qwill providing live music to groove to. There was also a bellydancer who started on stage and ended up amongst the audience (us)! It began as a regular yoga class, which I found particularly beautiful, as the dragonflies had come out, and were flying overhead as we practiced. Then it morphed into a dance party of sorts, asking us to move freely beyond our mats, flowing through the crowd, and stopping in a new spot. Instead of then ending with the traditional savasana, we were asked to pair up and do a kind of joint meditation, connecting through sustained eye contact, and really embodying the "namaste" energy. This was absolutely another exercise beyond my comfort zone, allowing vulnerability and such, but we ended with a nice hug, so I really can't complain. ;-) Our "rain dance" proved a bit too effective, however, and immediately following the final class, another much larger storm rolled in. It was apparent this one would be stronger, so things wrapped up early and most people headed to their cars. There was not much left to do anyway, with classes over and most of the vendors gone, so I'd say we were lucky the weather held up as well as it did until then. The festival moved under the facility's big deck for the evening's remaining band performances, which apparently went fabulously, but otherwise everything else was done. I did not regret leaving when I did, as the heavens really started opening up by the time I made my way through the parking "lot" (back field - the place was packed!) and to my car. Before I'd even driven to the road, it was a torrential downpour, which lasted for approximately half my hour-long commute. That would have put a damper on the fun, for sure, if I'd stayed. haha On the plus side, I got home early enough to take a much needed shower and have a warm bite to eat. All in all, it was a great experience, and I will definitely consider returning in future years. And why not? As the Wild Vibes site says, "opportunities to explore the weird and the wonderful are everywhere." Sounds like just my sort of thing. :-) #liveyourwild #namastewild #wildvibesfest2018
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